Pouring fitment



M. B. LUCAS POURING FITMENT Feb. 20, 1968 Filed Nov. 1, 1966 Fig. 3

INVENTOR. Malcolm B. Lucas ATTORNEY ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A pouring fitment for attachment to a fluid container is disclosed which incorporates a thin, readily deformable cylindrical diaphragm connecting its body member to its retractable pouring spout to effect a leakproof seal between the two members. A body member-diaphragm structure incorporating an integral drainage channel and vent opening is also disclosed. The drawings and disclosure should be consulted for details.

This invention relates to pouring fitments of the type adapted'for assembly in the pouring outlet of a conventional liquid container.

When pouring liquids, particularly oily liquids such as shortenings, salad oils, and the like, from conventional containers there is a tendency of residual liquid droplets to run down the outside surface of the bottle when pouring is discontinued. Various devices have been designed to overcome this problem. One device for this purpose which has been particularly successful is illustrated and described in US. Patent 3,217,935 which was granted to Robert V. Burt on Nov. 16, 1965, the patent being commonly owned by the assignee of the present invention. Theme of a pouring fitment, as described in the'Burt patent, eliminates surface run-down of oily liquid droplets which had heretofore been an objectionable drawback when pouring from a bottle.

An unforeseen problem was encountered in the use of a pouring fitment, as described in the Burt patent, because of the fact that commercial bottles, as received from glass manufacturers, have substantial variations in the inside diameter of the pouring outlet. In addition, the pouring outlet is commonly and frequently out-of-round. The out-of-round condition causes the pouring fitment to become distorted when assembled in the pouring outlet and this leads to leakage between the sealing surfaces which are in abutment in the fitment described in the Burt patent when it assumes its pouring attitude.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved pouring fitment which is unaffected by variations in the pouring outlet diameter and variations in the cross sectional configuration of the pouring outlet.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an improved pouring fitment which has no internal seal surfaces thereby eliminating bypass leakage even when the body of the fitment is grossly distorted as when it is inserted in a pouring outlet which is substantially out-ofround.

The nature and substance of the invention can be summarized briefly as comprising an improved pouring fitment which can be assembled in the pouring outlet of a conventional container filled with liquid product. The pouring fitment comprises a body member and an inner sleeve member which are integrally connected by a thinwalled cylindrical diaphragm which provides a seal to prevent outflow of liquid around the inner spout member. Biasing means are provided to urge the inner spout member to its pouring position. The inner spout member can be pushed downwardly and retracted within the body member when the closure cap is applied to the container.

While the specification concludes with claims particwuei dset s Pa n 3,369,710 Patented Feb. 20, 1968 "ice container pouring outlet with the cap secured in place and holding the inner spout element in its retracted position.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary elevation in cross section showing a modified sealing structure which can be utilized with the invention without affecting its internal structure.

Referring now to the drawings, a description of the invention will be made relating to its preferred embodiment. The pouring fitment of the invention is designed for use with any conventional liquid container which can be made of glass, metal, plastic, or any material normally used to store liquid products. Purely for convenience, a liquid container 10 made from glass is shown in FIG- URE 3. The invention has been found to have utility when used with glass containers of the kind commonly provided for packaging and dispensing liquid shortenings, salad oils, and like products. It is to be understood, however, that the material used for the container is not necessarily limited to glass, nor is the use of the improved pouring fitment limited to edible oil products. These specific materials and products are mentioned merely to give a specific example of one very useful application of the invention.

The pouring fitment, as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, can be molded from polyethylene or like plastics, or any other material that is feasible from a practical and economical standpoint. The fitment comprises an outer body 11, including an upper sleeve 12 which terminates at its upper end in an outwardly projecting flange 13. A plurality of narrow circumferential rings of ridges 14 are provided on the outer surface of the sleeve 12 for frictionally engaging the pouring outlet of the glass bottle as will be hereinafter described. A lower sleeve 15 is also provided as part of the body 11. The upper end of the sleeve 15 is connected to the upper sleeve 12 by means of the rearwardly sloping planar annular Wall 16 as best seen in FIGURES 1 and 2. A vent opening 17 is provided at the lowermost portion of the annular wall 16.

An inner spout member 18 is formed with a pouring lip 19 (see FIGURE 2) which terminates at a sharp cutoff edge 20. The inner spout member 18 is integrally formed with the outer 'body 11 by means of the cylindrical thin walled flexible diaphragm 21 which is interposed between the body 11 and inner spout member 18. The cylindrical diaphragm 21 extends fully around the spout member 18 as shown in FIGURES 1 and 2.

The lower portion of the sleeve 15 is provided with inwardly projecting lugs 22 which are employed to retain a stop member 23 and hold it in proper assembled relationship. A spring 24 is provided, the lower end of which bears against the stop member 23. The upper end of the spring 24 bears against the upper radial portion 25 of the cylindrical diaphragm 21. Thus, when the elements are assembled, as shown in FIGURE 1, the bias in the spring 24 causes them to assume their normal pouring attitude.

It will be noted that the vent opening 17 is located on the side opposite the pouring lip 19. When liquid is poured over the lip 19, the vent 17 will serve its normal function. When the bottle is returned to itsupright position, any excess droplets which flow downwardly over the outer surfaces of the inner spout 18 and the diaphragm 21, will flow by gravity down the annular wall 16 and be returned to the bottle through the vent opening 17. An examination of FIGURE 1 will also make it apparent that the body 11 can be distorted substantially out of its normal round configuration without affecting flow through the inner spout 18. When abnormal distortion of this kind is encountered, the diaphragm 21 functions to assure that all outflow of liquid occurs through the inner spout 18.

The improved pouring fitment is shown assembled in a glass container in FIGURE 3. The container 10 is provided with a conventional bottle finish including a pouring outlet 26, a sealing surface 27 and a thread 28. A transfer ring or bead 29 is normally provided on containers of this kind, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art of manufacturing glass containers. The container 10 is provided with a small annular cut-out 30 at the juncture of the pouring outlet 26 and the sealing surface 27. The cut-out 30 is of suflicient diameter and depth to seat the flange 13 of the pouring fitment such that the upper surface of the flange 13 is in the same plane or preferably somewhat beneath the plane of the sealing surface 27.

A closure cap 31 is secured to the thread 28 when the contents of the container are to be sealed. The closure cap 31 includes an internal sealing element consisting of a cork 32 and a liner 33 which can be of aluminum foil or any other suitable material. When the closure cap 31 is firmly screwed down to the position of FIGURE 3, the liner 33 bears against the sealing surface 27 to provide a liquid and gas tight seal. This is particularly important in the packaging of edible oil products and the like since they are subject to deterioration on unduecontact with air or oxygen. I

The assembly of the cap 31 on the finish of the bottle 10 also causes the inner spout 18 to be moved downwardly to its retracted position inside the body 11 of the pouring fitment. The cylindrical diaphragm 21 is made so that it is quite thin in cross section. It is highly flexible and readily deformable without the application of excessive force and without causing any permanent deformation or damage to the pouring fitment. Thus with the cap 31 in place, the attitude of the several parts of the assembly is shown in FIGURE 3. In the retracted position of FIG- URE 3, the portion of the diaphragm 21 integrally fast- 7 ened to the inner spout member 18 is within the portion of the diaphragm which is integrally fastened to the body member 11.

An alternative cap and seal arrangement is shown in FIGURE 4. The pouring fitment itself is essentially identical to the structure previously described, except that the flange 34 extends over and is seated on the sealing surface 35 of the bottle. This permits the use of a conventional bottle and cap in which the cap may be used without a liner. The inner surface of the cap 36 bears against the flange 34 to provide a liquid tight seal.

However, "most plastic materials are sufliciently oxygenpermeable such that an additional gas seal may be necessary in order to prevent deterioration of air sensitive products in the bottle. This is accomplished by providing a resilient sealing ring 37, e.g. a rubber O ring, that is wedged between the transfer bead 38 and the lower portion of the cap 36, as shown in FIGURE 4.

While particular embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and it is intended to cover in the appended claims all such changes and modifications that are within the scope of this invention.

What is claimed as new is:

1. In a pouring fitment comprising a body and an inner spout member within said body, the upper end of said inner spout member having an outwardly extending pouring lip terminating in a cut-off edge, and biasing means mounted within said body for normally urging said inner spout member into its pouring attitude, the improvement which comprises a thin-walled cylindrical flexible diaphragm within said body member, said diaphragm being integrally connected to said inner spout member at one end and to said body member at its other end, said diaphragm being highly flexible and readily deformable so that when the said spout is in a retracted position the portion of the diaphragm integrally fastened to the inner spout member is within the portion of said diaphragm integrally fastened to said body, said diaphragm preventing leakage around the inner spout member caused by distortion of the pouring fitment when assembled in the pouring outlet of a bottle.

2. An improved pouring fitment as in claim 1 wherein said body comprises an upper sleeve portion, a lower sleeve portion of less diameter than said upper sleeve, a planar annular wall sloping rearwardly which inte- -grally connects said upper and lower sleeve portions and a vent and drain opening at the lowermost portion of said annular wall.

3. An improved pouring fitment as in claim 2 wherein said biasing means includes a coil spring, the upper end of which bears against the upper radial portion of the diaphragm, the lower end of said coil spring being supported on a stop member supported in the lower portion of said body member.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,528,027 3/1925 Peterson 222-513 2,889,079 6/ 1959 Livingstone 222109 2,915,223 12/1959 Beall 222--l09 3,311,275 3/ 1967 Gibson 222-567 STANLEY H. TOLLBERG, Primary Examiner. 

